Biblical Types, Symbols & Patterns
Cankerworm
Claim-level biblical evidence review with contextual controls, canonical relationships, and preserved interpretive history.
How to read this entry
Evidence grades apply to individual claims, not to the headword as a whole. Strong biblical identification is kept separate from plausible or traditional interpretations, and unsupported proposals remain visible as negative evidence rather than being silently removed.
Cankerworm as archaic English rendering of yeleq locust terminology
KJV cankerworm represents Hebrew yeleq in Joel/Nahum; NET notes that the four Joel 1:4 insect terms are uncertain and likely locust designations or synonyms.
Context control: The exact species/developmental-stage identification is uncertain; the textual emphasis is crop devastation by locust invasion.
Cankerworm should be normalized as an archaic English locust term whose exact zoological identification is uncertain, not as an independent symbolic creature.
Grade 1: Explicit biblical interpretationScope: The exact species/developmental-stage identification is uncertain; the textual emphasis is crop devastation by locust invasion.
Residual uncertainty: No material residual uncertainty beyond the stated scope limitation.
Evidence sources
- NET Bible notes — Joel 1:4 locust terminology and translation uncertainty — Accessed/verified 2026-09-20
Fixed cankerworm = destructive spiritual powers code
The legacy entry abstracts destructive powers from the locust’s devastating effect.
Context control: Real locust devastation and military comparison explain the passages without positing a spiritual-power code.
Scripture does not identify cankerworm/yeleq as a fixed symbol of spiritual destructive powers; Joel’s imagery may compare locust devastation and invasion but remains context-bound.
Grade 7: Insufficient biblical evidenceScope: Real locust devastation and military comparison explain the passages without positing a spiritual-power code.
Strongest alternative: Literal locust plague and/or invasion metaphor better explains the destructive language.
Residual uncertainty: No material residual uncertainty beyond the stated scope limitation.
Scripture
Evidence sources
- NET Bible notes — Joel 1:4 locust terminology and translation uncertainty — Accessed/verified 2026-09-20
Study-aid notice
This page is part of an AI-assisted conservative evangelical Bible-study project. It has passed structured research, review, and QA gates, but it is not inspired or infallible and does not replace Scripture, prayer, pastors, teachers, or local church discernment.
Claims should be tested against Scripture in context. Corrections and Review Policy.